Auditor General Sheila Fraser had been scheduled to release a report on the G8 and G20 today, but the tabling was postponed by the election. Ignatieff said Prime Minister Stephen Harper has the costing reports “on his desk” and should share them with the public for accountability.

“Canadians deserve to know how the Conservatives completely mismanaged the G20, and how they alone are responsible for this billion-dollar boondoggle,” he said. “They deserve to know how Harper put the interests of Conservatives ahead of the interests of Canadians — choosing a location in (Industry Minister) Tony Clement’s riding that couldn’t handle a large summit.”

Ignatieff accused the Harper government of running up “sky-high costs,” causing businesses to lose profits and creating a security nightmare that “scarred” Toronto. The summits made international news when protesters clashed with police and critics lampooned government spending on the G20’s “fake lake.”

The day before the federal campaign began, the Commons public safety committee recommended an independent inquiry into policing problems, high costs and the property damage, physical harm and breaches of civil liberties related to the June events. A dissenting Conservative report rejected the “biased” claims and declared the summits an “unmitigated success.”

The Conservative campaign called Ignatieff’s demand “ridiculous,” noting that the auditor general reports to a Parliament which is not sitting because Ignatieff forced “an unnecessary and opportunistic election.”

“The auditor general is fully independent and determines — within the confines of the law — when she tables her reports,” campaign spokesman Ryan Sparrow told iPolitics. “As the auditor general has previously stated, ‘Premature disclosure represents a disregard for the statutory right of the House of Commons to receive our reports, and may represent a breach of parliamentary privilege.’”

Asked about the report during a news conference Tuesday, House Leader John Baird said it’s about proper procedure, not holding back important information about government spending during a campaign.

“It is the auditor general who writes the report, and she has the power to audit all government actions,” he said. “As usual, she will table her report to the House of Commons.”